COSTA CROCIERE: DEBUT AND GROWTH IN DUBAI

On 15 April, the Costa Classica departed from the port of Dubai on a spectacular 16-day cruise to come back to the Italian port of Savona. The departure of the ship officially closes the first season of the Italian company Costa Crociere SpA in the Arabian Gulf.

Costa Crociere, the market leader in Europe and South America, was the first company in the world to offer regular cruises from Dubai in the global cruise industry.

During the new 2006/2007 winter season, from December to April, the Costa Classica (53,000 gross tonnage and total guest capacity of 1680) left from Dubai every Saturday on a 7-day itinerary includes two nights in Dubai and one-day stopovers in the ports of Muscat, Fujairah, Abu Dhabi and Bahrain.

The inaugural season of Costa Classica out of Dubai was a big success, with a total of 17 calls and around 44,000 Guests. The majority of Guests came from Europe (mainly Italian, German, Austrian, French, English and Spanish), but reservations came also form USA and Asia.

Costa Crociere will double its cruise ships in Dubai for the 2007/2008 winter season: the Costa Romantica (53,000 gross tonnage and total guest capacity of 1697) and the Costa Europa (55,000 gross tonnage and total guest capacity of 1830) will substitute Costa Classica.

There will be a total of 25 calls (15 on the Costa Romantica, 10 on the Costa Europa) with 70,000 Guests (40,000 on the Costa Romantica, 30,000 on the Costa Europa). The two ships will be deployed on the same itinerary already marketed by Costa in winter 2006/2007. The Costa Romantica will set sail on Saturdays from December 21, 2007 to March 30, 2008; and the Costa Europa will depart every Sunday from December 22, 2007 through February 25, 2008.

FIVE CRUISE SHIPS BRING TOURISTS TO DUBAI

Dubai welcomed five cruise ships at its state-of-the-art cruise terminal since the start of this month with passengers from various nationalities on board the luxury vessels from the US, German Japanese cruiseliners.

The cruise ships which docked in Dubai were: Silver Cloud, Pacific Venus, Seabourn Spirit, Silver Shadow and Amadea.

The US cruiseliner, Silver Cloud, arrived in Dubai from the Indian port city of Mumbai for a regional tour with 222 crew members and 488 passengers, mostly US and European nationals.

From April 21 to 22, the US vessel, Seabourn Spirit, came to Dubai from Muscat enroute to Khassab, with 364 passengers and 167 crew members.
The US cruise liner, Silver Whisper, docked in Dubai on March 25 for a two-day sojourn with 684 passengers and crew members, mostly US and European nationals. The bulk of the passengers were of European nationalities.

Pacific Venus, a Japanese cruise liner, arrived in Dubai from Mumbai on April 19 for a two-day trip with 619 passengers and 213 crew members. The next port of call was Egypt. The US cruise ship, Silver Shadow, docked at the Dubai Cruise Terminal in Port Rashid Complex recently for a two-day sojourn with about 425 passengers and crew members.

The vessel left the emirate for the Arabian Gulf port of Muscat. The cruise ship passengers were mostly American and European nationals.

German cruise ship Amadea arrived for a three-day sojourn with about 700 passengers and crew members. The cruise ship passengers are mostly Germans nationals.

Mr. Awadh Seghayer Al Ketbi, Director of Dubai Cruise Terminal operated by the Dubai Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM), said: “Dubai is becoming a popular cruise destination in the world. The arrival of more and more cruise ships speaks volumes about the status that Dubai now enjoys on the world cruise tourism map.”

The ship-shaped cruise terminal, opened in 2001, measures 3300 square metres and is able to accommodate two ships simultaneously on a 335-metre quay The Dubai Cruise Terminal is the world's first to receive ISO-9002 certification and also the world’s only cruise facility run by the government tourism body.